Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-05-27

nical in character, and the officers after
| listening 10 the wants explained said they
would have replies ready in few days.
As we went up the steps to the Interior
| Department to see Secretary Lamar, the
Senator told me this place made him
| more trouble than any other executive
branch of the government; that the cues
| tons growing out of land and Indian af.
fairs were most perplexing; that patents
were slowest in development, and that
! pensions were most numerous. Secretary
Lamar sighed as the Senator entered. and
said he was glad that he did not have to
deal with an office-seeker this time.
"No," replied the Senator, Hnot 81
otfice-seeker, but an opinion-hunter. Here
are three OF the most annoying questions
in reference to making proof of land en-
! tries you have come in contact with since
| you sat in that chair. | want the highest
| Judgment first, so there will be no appeal.
And while am at it will present an APP
! peal on question relating TO an Indian
| post Also matter growing
out of an eleemonsynary institution under
this department question of admit
ting certain person."
| Then the Offices of the Commissioner
of the General Land Office, Commissioner
of Patents and the Principal Examiner
were visited and the bundle of documents
reduced again.
"Now have the most interesting part
OF my mission to perform" said the
Senator, as we passed down the high
steps and he cast his glances across the
street to the Postoffice Department. "My
colleague and | are rasping each other
about some appointments in our state.
have recommended certain men for
prominent postoftiCes and he is recon-
mending others | suspect that he is
using unfair means to thWart me. | must
see all the papers he has filed in the de-
partment, and must do it-Without at.
tracing attention"
We entered the room of g clerk having
charge OF the papers relating TO the post
offices and postmasters in one state
which the Senator was directly interested
in. The Senator asked to see all the
papers filed in certain cases, and they
were dumped out on table. Quickly
he ran over them, making a memorandum
Of the pertinent points. Then he asked
for the papers upon which two postmas-
tiers had been removed. | noticed mis-
brow corrugste as he read these More
memorandum was made, many questions
asked, and out ne went.
"I have discovered" said the Senator,
"that my colleague has been playing
double; that my enemies have controlled
the appointment of two postmasters who
hate me; that friend has been removed
on false accusations, and that the loC6-
ton OF g postotlice is about 10 be taken
from me and placed with my opponents"
The superintendent of the Railway
Msil Service got some of the Senator's
documents, in the form OF letters and
recommendations for postal CleTkships;
also petition to reiGstate g CLERK and
another TO remove one. The Suparin-
tendent of Free Delivery was asked to
send an Inspector to two or three little
cities TO see if they were not entitled uu-
der the new law to free mail delivery
The First Assistant Postmaster General
wanted to know after the Senator gave
the names of more than g dozen fourth
class postmasters for removal and as
many more for appointment If there was
anything he could do for the Senator, and
when told "nothing, Whatever," he
smiled and said he hoped the senator
would call when he wanted something
"And now" sighed the Senator, "for
our last building-the pension Office.
Here is place visit SIX days in the week
when l am in the city. This is the bane
of public men. We tramp here
and pour over pension applications,
write thousands of letters in g year, aud
get curses for our pains. Especially do
Opprobiums pour on our heads for fail
ures. Those who get pensions through
our efforts are generally thankful; but in
their inner souls they believe they would
have got them without our assistance.
We can never explain failure satisfaCto-
rily to an applicant. l will leave this little
bundle here. There are more than forty
cases Meteorological applications, ap-
peals, requests for increases of pensions,
and for every phase of pension matters
here is cuen
When these matters were lodged with
Commissioner Black l began to think of
the end of my Journeys but when we were
again in the carriage | saw We were being
driven toward the capitol. The Senator
explained that he kept his surplus docu-
ments and seeds in the committee-roOm,
and would have to 90 there to execute
some orders for constituents.
~ presume you mean requests" OBJ
served.
"No ORDERS" was the reply. cit used
to be requests; now it is order. My con-
s.ituents frequently write me, ordering
garden seeds, documents, books of vari-
Gus kinds which have to buy, especially
the Revised Statutes OF the United States,
just the same as s merchant orders 8 bill
of goods he expects to pay for"
Soon discovered that not seeds and
documents alone called my friend to the
capitol. He went to an officer of the
Senate to see about the retention of an
employe who was on the verge of dismis
sal. Then he attempted to get into nu-
merous committee rooms to OBJ
tain information about documents
filed there during the last Congress IN
cases now dead. Finally he drew from
his pocket memorandum OF bills o
various kinds which constituents had
requested, and he went to the document
room for them. The afternoon was fast
waning, and l observed that the Senator
did not take his hat of at any place he
visited. He had bolted right into the
room of the Cabinet officers and an
nounced his wants without ceremony,
like lawyer enters the Office of the clerk
when the court is in session and he has
case at bar.
As we were on the steps at the east
side of the Capitol and l was congratulate
ing myself upon the ending of our weari-
some trip, my statesmanic friend ex-
claimed:
"Two more little things before leave
this part of the town. nave here in my
pocket letter from q man who wants g